Swami Shivapadananda on grace
SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA
DAILY READINGS
Taken from Mother Radha’s
notes, written at Swamiji’s feet.
Day 355
Do not criticise others. See what you do. Do you get up at 3 a.m.?
Before each Yoga Camp [this was a Ramakrishna Centre of SA Ashram tradition at Easter and Christmas-time] fast for three days and then spend the four days
with God.
Self-surrender is not easy, so say: ‘Lord, all good things are Yours,
all comes from You and these are offered back to You. This body and mind are
also offered back to You, it is all Yours. Whatever they do is done by You.’
God’s grace is very subtle, we are not even aware of it. When I think of
God’s Grace, [Swamiji is silent and tears fill his eyes] it is like dew. You
put the car in the driveway and go to sleep. Later you get up and go to the
car. What do you see? Thousands of dew drops. And you think, ‘Ah yes, that is
how it was.’ Each drop reflects the whole Universe, the whole sun. But who sees
this? Can I feel His grace with my coarse skin? No, but it is there, all the
time, flowing.
God’s grace comes though patience and perseverance. Take note of the
order in which I give it.
When Gurudev [Swami Nischalananda Puri, Swamiji’s Guru] used to press my leg I used to think, ‘Is it
a test? Or is it love?’
When the mind is calm, hours pass in thought of the Lord.
Satsang [a religious or prayer service], the darshan of the holy, is the
most important of all. You do not know what it does for you. You do not know
what the company of a holy man does for you. Not a thousand years will have
that effect on you. Do you think there must be excitement, emotion,
sense-reaction? No. There must be calmness, no reaction.
Click on 'Continue reading' below to find out about CDs of Swamiji speaking.
1)
Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's
words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that
he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.
2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.
Besides these daily readings Mother Radha recorded many hours of our beloved Swamiji speaking.
There are currently 100 different CDs available in sets of 10 for R200 per set. This price includes postage. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order.
Reference websites: Ramakrishna Math & Mission, Ramakrishna Centre of Southern Africa, Ramakrishna Dham